Trump to roll back Biden-era fuel economy standards that limit air pollution |
President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a proposal to weaken vehicle mileage rules for the auto industry, loosening regulatory pressure on automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and trucks.
The plan, if finalized next year, would significantly reduce fuel economy requirements, which set rules on how far new vehicles need to travel on a gallon of gasoline, through the 2031 model year. The administration and automakers say the rules will increase Americans’ access to the full range of gasoline vehicles they need and can afford.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration projects that the new standards would set the industry fleetwide average for light-duty vehicles at roughly 34.5 miles per gallon in the 2031 model year, down from a projected 50.4 miles per gallon in 2031 under the Biden-era rule.
The move is the latest action by the Trump administration to reverse Biden-era policies that encouraged cleaner-running cars and trucks, including electric vehicles, and it sparked criticism from environmental groups. Burning gasoline for vehicles is a major contributor to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.
“From day one I’ve been taking action to make buying a car more affordable,” Trump said at a White House event that included top executives from two of the largest U.S. automakers.
The rule reverses a Biden-era policy that “forced automakers to build cars using expensive technologies that drove up costs, drove up prices and made the car much worse,” Trump said.
The action is expected to save consumers about $1,000 off the price of a new car, Trump said. New cars sold for an average of $49,766 on average in October, according to Kelley Blue Book.
Automakers applauded the planned changes,........